L.A., Memphis & Tyler, Texas

by Dale Hawkins

Overview

Dale Hawkins, of course, is best known for "Suzie-Q" -- a Top 30 Billboard hit for him in 1957 that turned into a garage rock standard in the '60s. During that decade, Hawkins was relatively quiet as a record-maker, but he did behind-the-scenes work as a producer before resurfacing in 1969 with LA, Memphis & Tyler, Texas on Bell Records. Named after the three towns it was recorded in, it's a bit easy to overrate LA, Memphis upon its first listen because it comes as a shock that Hawkins was more than a rockabilly cat. He was an early roots rocker, certainly, playing rockabilly but also touching back on its blues and country roots, plus hitting a bunch of stuff in between -- and don't forget the L.A. in the title, either, since he did give this album several splashes of snazzy showbiz pizzazz reminiscent of Sonny Bono. Those showbiz colors -- primarily the blaring horn charts and studio slickness achieved with heavy reverb and occasionally punctuated by flutes, fuzz guitars, and Mellotrons -- give this album a polish that makes it go down easy but also treads a bit close too kitsch, making this an artifact of a plaid-n-paisley era. But it's also a period piece in another way: it does capture the time when roots rock was forming in the music of the Band, the Sir Douglas Quintet, and Tony Joe White, and those really are the closest touchstones to Hawkins' work here. More than any other of his '50s peers -- with the notable exception of Ricky Nelson -- Hawkins could tap into that spirit, as this often remarkable, always entertaining album shows. Yes, there is a little bit of unintentional camp here, but that's part of what makes it entertaining, since it marks it as a late-'60s LP and makes the visionary stuff here -- the times when he knocks down borders between soul and rock, when he digs into funky, bluesy workouts that sound like all genres without belonging to any of them -- still sound vibrant and exciting decades later. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	05/04/2018
Label:	Bear Family Records
UPC:	5397102180415

Tracks

1. L.A.-Memphis-Tyler
2. Heavy on My Mind
3. Joe
4. Hound Dog
5. Back Street
6. La-La-La-La
7. Candy Man
8. Ruby (Don¿¿¿t Take Your Love to Town)
9. Baby What You Want Me to Do
10. Little Rain Cloud

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Dale Hawkins   Primary Artist
Taj Mahal   Percussion,Harmonica
Ronnie "Mouse" Weiss   Guitar
David Stanley   Bass
Linda Waring   Drums
Dirty John   Piano
James Burton   Guitar
Spooner Oldham   Piano (Electric)
Ry Cooder   Guitar
Robert Payne   Organ
Wayne Jackson   Horn
Bugs Henderson   Guitar
Dan Penn   Vocals
Paul Humphrey   Drums
Joe Osborn   Bass

Technical Credits

Joel Brodsky   Photography
David Krieger   Cover Design
Tim Tooher   Liner Notes
B. Ross   Composer
Andy Morten   Design,Artwork,Producer
Beverly Ross   Composer
Wayne Carson Thompson   Composer
Ronnie Fauss   Composer
Bobby Charles   Composer
Jimmy Reed   Composer
Fred Neil   Composer
Jerry Leiber   Composer
Nick Robbins   Recreation
Mel Tillis   Composer
Mike Stoller   Composer
Dan Penn   Composer
Dale Hawkins   Composer,Producer
Joe Foster   Producer,Recreation